Liner hanger and packer construction



oct. 29, 1963 Y E, BURNS LINER HANGER AND PACKER CONSTRUCTION 2sheets-sheet 1 Filed Oct. 14, 1957 v INVENTOR. f gw 4M iai/wr Oct. 29,1963 v3,108,638

E. BURNS ALINER HANGER AND PACKER CONSTRUCTION Filed' oct. 14, 1957 2sheets-sheet 2 e BY 45@ XW M Jj l A65/v7:

United States Patent O1 BgldS Patented Oct. 29., 1963 ice 3,108,638LINER HANGER AND PACKER CGNSTRUCTION Erwin Burns, Los Angeles, Caiif.Burns Tool Company, 8346 Salt Lahe Ave., Bell, Calif.) Filed Oct. 14,1357, Ser. No. 689,931 Claims. (Cl. 166124) This invention relates to anoil well tool and is more particularly concerned with a combinationliner hanger and packer and is of the general construction shown inUnited States Patent No. 2,337,733, to Erwin Burns and Frank C. Boyd,ventitled Liner Hanger, and issued December 28, 1943.

In the type of liner hanger disclosed in the aboveidentied patent, astructure is provided which includes an elongate vertically disposedbody adapted to be secured to the upper end of a liner, hanging andsetting means at the upper end of the body and including a barrelslidably engaged around the body and carrying casing engaging slips, anda deformable packer including an apertured cage fixed to and dependingfrom the hanger barrel to slidably receive the body, a lead packerengaged around the cage and an actuating sleeve surrounding the cageabove the packer and connected to the body through the apertures in thecage and adapted to distend the packing and urge it into sealingengagement with the well casing when the body of the tool is shifteddownwardly through the barrel and the cage.

Although the above general construction has, for many years, provenreasonably satisfactory, it has been found that uid in the annulusaround the tool and occurring above or below the packer, is free tobypass and iiow around the packer between the body and the'cage andthrough the apertures in the cage, after the packer Vis set. In wellswhere extremely high pressures are encountered, the liow of uid throughand around the packer, in the manner set forth above, rapidly wears orcuts away the portions of the packer which it engages, as well as thebody, cage and actuator sleeve of the construction, thereby renderingthe entire construction useless. In certain circumstances, cutting awayof the construction in the manner set forth above, can, in time, cut thebody in two, dropping the liner in the well and necessitating theexpensive operation of fishing and retrieving the liner.

Liner and packer constructions such as that disclosed in my co-pendingapplication Serial No. 660,106, tiled May 20, 1957, and entitled LinerHanger and Packer, have been designed to overcome the above-mentioneddefects. However, such constructions fail to utilize any of the elementsof existing constructions in which the defect mentioned above exists andnecessitates that an entirely new tool be provided.

An object of the present invention is to provide anovel sealing meansapplicable to the lower end of the packer cage in a construction such asillustrated in Patent No. 2,337,733, to seal between the cage and thebody of the tool and thereby prevent the leakage of iiuid therebetween.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a sealing means ofthe character referred to above that can be easily and convenientlyapplied to existing liner and packer constructions of the characterreferred to, thereby making it possible for owners or purchasers of suchtools to have their toois modernized by a simple modification andwithout the necessity of incurring the expense of purchasing an entirelynew tool.

Other objects and features of this invention will be made apparent andfully understood from the following detailed description of a typicalpreferred form and application of my invention, throughout whichdescription reference is made to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. l is a longitudinal elevational view showing the tool provided bythe present invention engaged in a well structure and showing the toolin an unactuated position.

FIG. 2 is an elevational view showing the tool that I provide in anactuated position in the well.

FIG. 3 is a longitudinal sectional view taken substantially as indicatedby line 3 3 on FIG. 2.

FIG. 4 is a longitudinal sectional view taken as indicated by line 4 4on FIG. 1.

FIG. 5 is an exploded sectional view showing a portion of the hangercage and the actuating ring.

FIG. 6 is a transverse sectional view taken as indicated by line 6--6 onFIG. 4.

FIG. 7 is a transverse sectional view taken as indicated by line 7-7 onFIG. 4.

FIG. 8 is a transverse sectional view taken as indicated by line 8-8 onFIG. 3.

Referring particularly 4to the form of the invention illustratedthroughout the drawings, 10 indicates a well casing which is set withina well bore 11 and within which a liner hanger 12 is mounted. The linerhanger is shown as including a square mandrel or stern 13 which isthreaded into the lower end of a drill pipe joint 14. This stem issquare in cross section and has ta lower threaded end 15 whichthreadedly receives a nut 16. The nut 16 is internally threaded as at 17and may receive the threaded end of a suitable length of ltubing throughwhich circulating iiui-d or cement may be forced `downwardly into theliner. The square stem 13 extends through a liner nut 18 of the settingtool. This nut has a central bore therethrough of square cross-section,as indicated at 19, and through which the :stem 13 may slide whilepositively engaging the nut to impart rotation thereto. The exteriorsurface of the lower cylindrical portion of the liner nut is formed withthreads 20. These threads are square left hand threads. The upper lengthof the nut is cylindrical, as indicated at 211. The upper end of thiscylindrical portion is threaded at 23 to receive an annular bearing nutat 24. The bearing nut 24 has a lower shoulder forming a ball race 25,which rests an anti-friction bearing 26, which bearing is shown as beingof conventional ball bearing type. The anti-friction bearing rests uponthe upper end face of a sleeve 27 of the setting tool. The sleeve 27 iscylindrical and is formed at its lower end with a frusto-conical face28. A cylindrical bore 29 is formed in the sleeve and the :sleeve has arunnin-g fit with the upper cylindrical portion 2.1 of the nut 18. Thelower end of t-he sleeve is machined or turned down and forms a squareshoulder 30 which rests against a shoulder 31 at the upper end of thethreaded section 20 of the nut. This restrains the sleeve 27 fromlongitudinal movement upon the extension 21 of the nut 18.

Extending downwardly from the sleeve 27 are a plural-ity of separate:slip-engaging ngers 32 which fingers are mounted on the outercircumference of the sleeve 27 and overhang the threaded portion 2d ofthe nut 18, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4 of the drawings. Three of thesefingers are here shown and their purpose in the structure. will4hereinafter be described.

The liner hanger is shown as including a tubular body 34, which isinternally threaded at i-ts upper end, as indicated at 35. The threads35 are complementary to the threads 20 on the nut .18. The upper end ofthe body 34 is formed with an internally and downwardly tapered seat 36which is complementary to the end face 28 of the sleeve 27. Slidablymounted upon the tubular body member 34 is a slip barrel 37. The barrel37 is provided with a radially inwardly projecting flange 38 at itsupper end, which flange engages the upper end of the body 34 andprevents downward shifting and displacement of the slip barrel on thebody 34. Formed within the cylindrical outer yface of the slip barrel 37are guideways 40,

D which receive wickered slips 41. These slips are designed to moveupwardly and outwardly in the guideways 40. A plurality of springs 42are mounted in the barrel at the heel of the slips to normallyyieldingly urge the slips upwardly in the guideways. The upper end ofeach slip is 4formed with a linger 43, which extends along alongitudinal slot 44 provided in the exterior of the barrel and intowhich the lingers 43 on the slips 41 extend. The lingers 32 and 43 arein longitudinal alignment and when the sleeve 27 is in its lowermostposition. The fingers 32 engage the iingers 43 and force the slipsdownwardly and hold them retracted so that they will not grip the wallof the casing 10l until released.

The lower end of the slip barrel 37 is internally threaded as indicatedat 45. This receives the upper end of a packer cage 46. The packer cage46 is shown as having a substantially cylindrical body portion 47 and anenlarged collar portion 48 at the lower end thereof. The body portion.is cut away at intervals about its circumference to establish elongateslot-like apertures 49 therein and has longitudinal wall portions t)between the apertures. The upper end of the cylindrical portion 47 isexternally threaded as indicated at 51 and is threadedly engaged intothe threaded bore 45 of the slip barrel 37. It will be seen that due tothe fact that the enlarged collar 48 is of a diameter somewhat greaterthan the diameter of the cylindrical body 47, a radially outwardly andsubstantially vertically disposed shoulder 52 is established at ltheupper end thereof.

Engaged or cast around the portion Sti of the cage and filling theslot-like openings or apertures 49 therein is a sleeve-type packer 53.This packer may be of any desired design or construction and of anysuitable deformable material, such for example as lead. It will beapparent from a study of the drawings, that the packer -sleeve iscylindrical and of an outside diameter agreeing with that of theenlarged collar 48 on the cage. The inside diameter of the packingsleeve, indicated at S4, iits snugly around the exterior of the cage andabout the circumferential face of the body 34 occurring adjacent theapertures 49 in the cage, as clearly illustrated in FIGS. 4 and 7 of thedrawings.

The length of the packer sleeve is such as to insure space for a packeractu-ating ring 55. The actuating ring 55 is shown as including anannular wall section 56. The outer diameter -of this section agrees withthe normal outside diameter of -the packer barrel and the outsidediameter of the slip barrel 37. Arcuate lugs 57 extend inwardly from theannu-lar portion 56 of the ring and are spaced at equal intervalstherearound. 'Ihese lugs lit into the upper ends of the slotted openingsor apertures 49 in the packer cage and have the inner portions fixed tothe exterior of the body as by welding. As illustrated in the drawings,the packer sleeve is of a length shorter than the openings 49 andsuflicient to permit the lugs 57 to assume a position in the ends of theopenings and resting against the upper end face of the packer sleeve 53.

The other or lower end lof the body 34 extends downwardly below the cage46 a desired distance and is externally threaded at S9 to receive acoupling 'collar 60 into which is threaded the upper end of `a perforateliner 61.

Before use, the structure is assembled in the manner illustrated inFIGS. `1 and 4 of lthe drawings, by placing the packer cage with thepacking ring tberearound the body member 34 and with the actuating ring55 disposed above the sleeve 53, and so that the lug-like portions ofthe ring 55 will protrude through the apertures or openings 49 in thecage 46. Thus, the under surface of the ring 55 extends entirely acrossthe upper surf-ace of the packing sleeve 53. The lugs on the ring 55 arethen fixed to the body, as by welding. The slip barrel 37 is thenattached to the top of the packer cage A46 by threading the portion 51of the packer into the threaded section 45 of the barrel 37. When thusthreaded, the liange 38 at the upper end of the slip barrel eng-ages andrests on the upper end of the body 34 :and limits downward movement anddisplacement of the slip barrel and the elements of the packing meansrelated thereto, relative to the body. The liner nut 1,8 carrying thesleeve 27 is then threaded into position with the upper end of the bodymember 34 and by engagement of the threads 20 on the nut with thethreads 3S in the -body member. When ther nut is tightened intoposition, the tapered face 28 on the sleeve 27 will rest Iagainst theupwardly tapered face 36 on the slip barrel. It will be understood thatwhen this assembly is made, the Isleeve 37 does not rotate since thelingers 32 extend into the longitudinal recesses 44 in the slip barrel37. While thus held, the nut 18 is tightened and will move the lingers32 downwardly to engage lingers 43 on the ends of the wickered slips 41.These slips will be held in their retracted position so long as the nutis tightened to its seated position. Attention is directed to the factthat while the nut 18 is rotated as controlled by the mandrel 13, thetubular 'body 34 is stationary and produces advantages to be moreclearly set forth hereinafter.

When the structure is assembled as directed above, the perforated liner6|1 is attached to the lower end of the tubular body 34 by the couplingcollar 60. The structure is then ready -to be lowered into a Ibore of anoil well 4and to be set with relation to the casing 10 therein.

The construction thus far described, is substantially the same `as thatdisclosed in Patent No. 2,337,733, which patent is fully identifiedabove.

In addition to the foregoing, the construction provided by the presentinvention further includes a suitable sealing `means X at the lower endof the packer cage 46, below the packing sleeve 53 and :adapted toestablish a iluid tight seal between the cage and the body and therebyprevent the flow of iiuid upwardly between the cage and the body, pastthe packing sleeve after the said packing sleeve has been actuated.

In the particular case illustrated, the sealing means X is shown asincluding a downwardly opening socket 70 entering the lower end of theenlarged collar 48 at the lower end of the cage, yand through which thebody 34 extends, an annular body of deformable sealing material 71engaged in and seated on the bottom of the socket 70 and slidablyreceiving the body 3'4, and an annular follower nut 72 slidably engagedyaround the body and threaded into the socket 70 from the open bottomend thereof and adapted to be advanced into the socket and intoengagement with the packing 71 to urge it into tight sealing engagementwith the body.

In operation of the present invention, and when the liner hanger isassembled and set in the manner illustrated in FGS. 1 and 4 of thedrawings, it is ready to be run into the :well bore 11. It is to bepointed out that in the event :that the lower end of the packer cage 46should strike an object or meet resistance while being lowered into thecasing, it will in no way effect the tool and the tool will remain inits set assembled position, since the packer 46 is directly connected tothe slip barrel through the threaded connection 3S and the slip barrel,in turn, is held yagainst longitudinal movement by means of the sleevewhich is held by the hanger nut 18. It will be therefore seen that noamount of end thrust on the lower end of the cage 46 will ever deformthe packer sleeve 53.

When the structure is lowered into the well it will be understood thatthe liner `61 is in place on the lower end of the liner hanger body 34.Due to the length of the stem 13 it is possible for the hanger to haveconsiderable longitudinal movement on the stem so that the hanger andthe liner may be manipulated sutiiciently to facilitate the handling ofthe table slips and other means used at the surface of the well. Whenthe liner has reached the desired point in the well, rotation of thedrill pipe 14 to the right will impart similar rotation to the stem 23and will result in positive rotation of the hanger nut 1S. The nut willthen .advance 4longitudinally upwardly. This moveannesso g ment willcorrespondingly move the sleeve 27 upwardly due to the abuttingengagement of the shoulders 3l? and 31. As previously explained, thesleeve Z7 carries the fingers 32. The lingers 32 will move upwardly andaway from their abutting engagement with the fingers 43 carried at theupper ends of the wickered slips 41. rllhis will permit the springs 42at the heel of the slips to `force the slips upwardly land outwardlyinto engagement with the inner face of the casing 10 engaged in the wellbore 11. At this time, the sleeve 27 is held against rotation, due tothe ffact that the lingers 32 on the sleeve extend into the longitudinal:grooves 33 formed in the outer face of the slip barrel 37. Whenrelative rotation takes place between the nut I8 `and the sleeve 27, theanti-friction bearing 26 serves to reduce frictional resistance. Whenthe slips 41 engage the wall of the casing with suilicient force to holdthe hanger in position Iand the nut 18 is further rotated and shiftedout of engagement from the body 34, the weight of the liner istransmitted directly onto the actuating ring 55 through the body. Thusthis weight will be imposed by the ring 55 and its lugs 57 upon thepacker sleeve 53 to deform the same and to face it outwardly and intosealing engagement with the wall of the casing, as clearly illustratedin FIGS. 2 and 3 and 8 of the drawings. Thus, the hanger with the linersuspended therefrom will be set and sealed in position within thecasing. When the construction is -actuated or set in the mannerdescribed above, and the body 34 shifts downwardly through the packercage 47, it will be apparent that the sealing means X at the lower endof the cage in no way interrupts the operation of the device andsuitably packs off tand seals between the cage and the body after theconstruction is set.

In practice, the liner is of sufcient size and mass yand the threads .20on the nut 18 are of such pitch that when the tool is run into the welland rotation of the drill pipe 14 is rotated to actuate the tool, theinsertion of the liner is sufficient to prevent the `liner :fromrotating with the drill string and to assure operation of the tool. Ifthe liner is not of suicient size 4and mass to assure the desiredoperation of the ltool, a suitable formation engaging spring caige orother suitable device can be applied to the liner to frictionally engagethe well bore r casing to hold the liner against rotation.

Having described only a typical preferred form and application of myinvention, l do not Iwish to be limited or restricted to the specificdetails herein set forth, but wish to reserve to Amyself any variationsor modifications that may appear to those skilled in the art andfallwithin the scope of the following claims.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A structure of the character referred to including, an elongatecasing in a well bore, a liner lhanger in said casing including, anelongate cylindrical body having upper and lower ends land a centralflow passage, a tubular liner fixed to and depending from the lower endof the body, an elongate slip barrel having upper and lower endsslidably engaged about the exterior of the body and having a pluralityof circumferentially spaced casing engaging slips about its exterior,said slips being shiftable upwardly and radially outwardly from anunactuated position 'where they are clear of the casing to an actuatedposition where they engage the casing, a settingtoolto releasably holdthe body up in an unactuated position in the barrel and to releasablyhold the slips in their unactuated position including, an elongatemandrel xed .to and depending from a run-in string extending into saidVcasing, a nut in driving engagement on the mandrel and threadedlyengaged in the upper end of the body, a sleeve rotatably carried by thenut and :engaging the upper end of the barrel and slip engaging lingerscarried by the sleeve land releasably holding the slips down in theirunactuated` position, Vsaid tool being-operable to rotate the nut outVof engagement twiththe b ody and to shift the sleeve and the fingers outof engagement with the barrel and the slips, whereby the slips areactuated to engage the casing and the body is free to shift downwardlyrelative to the barrel, an elongate tubular packer cage having an upperportion fixed to the lower end of the barrel, a central portion having aplurality of circumferentially spaced slot openings defining a pluralityof circumferentially spaced longitudinal wall portions and an enlargedlower portion delining an upwardly disposed shoulder, said cage having astraight cylindrical bore slidably receiving the portion of the bodydepending from the barrel, said wall portion of the cage being arcuatein crosssection and establishing sliding bearing support about 4adjacentportions of the body, an elongate deformable packing sleeve having upperand lower ends slidably engaged about the exterior of the centralportion of the cage land having rib-like portions projecting into theopenings in the cage to engage the body, said packing sleeve being ofless longitudinal extent than the central portion of the p calge andpositioned with its lower end in bearing engagement on the shoulder, anannular actuating ring having a plurality of radially inwardlyprojecting lugs slidably engaged about the central portion of the cageto occur adjacent the upper end of the packer sleeve and with the lugsprojecting through the openings in the cage and fixed to the body, saidactuating ring being the same in cross-sectional conguration as thepacker sleeve whereby, upon downward shifting of the body and the ring,the weight of the liner and body is exerted on the packer sleeve tocompress it between the actuating ring and the shoulder on the cage anddistend it radially inwardly and outwardly into sealing engagement withthe wall portions of the cage, the portions of the body between the wallportions of the cage and the casing, said actuating ring slidablyengaging and holding said wall portions of the cage in sliding bearingengagement on the body, and sealing means carried by the lower portionof the cage below the slots in the cage and sealing with the body, saidsealing Imeans including a downwardly opening socket in the lower end ofthe cage, an annular packing ring-in the socket engaging the body and afollower nut threadedly engaged in the socket to engage and retain thepacking ung.

'2. A packer assembly, comprising an elongate vertically disposedtubular body having a central flow passage -and a straight cylindricalexterior, an elongate tubular packer cage having upper and lower endsengaged about the body and adapted to engage a supporting member at itsupper end, said cage having a straight cylindrical bore establishingsliding bearing engagement with the exterior of the body throughout thelongitudinal extent of the cage, the lower end of the cage being formedwith a shoulder in a plane transverse of the longitudinal axis of thecage and extending outwardly therefrom, the wall of the cage beingformed with a plurality of longitudinally extending andcircumferentially arranged slotted openings intermediate the upper andlower ends and delining a plurality of longitudinally extendingcircumferentially arranged wall portions, each being segmental incrosssection and establishing sliding bearing support about a portionofthe body throughout its longitudinal extent, an elongate verticallydisposed tubular deformable packer sleeve engaged aboutand carried bythe cage and being of a thickness normally represented by the outsidediameter of the shoulder on the cage and the outside diameter of thecage, said packer sleeve having a plurality ot' longitudinally extendingcircurn-ferentially spaced, radially inwardly projecting ribs formedintegrally therein and projecting into the slots in the wall of the cageand establishing bearing engagement on the outer sur-faces of the bodybetween the said wall portions of the cage, an actuating ring at theupper end of the cage having an outside diameter agreeing with theoutside diameterV of the packer sleeve in its normal position, ianinside diameter agreeing with the outside diameter of the cage andcarrying lugs which extend through the slots through the wall of thecage and fixed to the body, fwhereby downward pressure upon the body andthe ring will act against the lupper end of the sleeve to deform thesame and distend it radially into sealing engagement with the shoulder,the wall portions of the cage, the portions of the body between the wallportions of the cage and a circumscribing well structure, said ringslidably engaging and supporting the longitudinal wall portions of thecage and holding said wall portions in sliding engagement on the body,and a sealing means carried by the lower end of the cage below the slotsin the cage to engage and seal with the body.

3. A packer assembly comprising7 an elongate vertically disposed tubularbody having -a central flow passage and a straight cylindrical exterior,an elongate tubular packer cage having upper and lower ends engagedabout the body and adapted to engage a supporting member at its upperend, said cage having a straight cylindrical bore establishing slidingbearing engagement with the exterior of the body throughout thelongitudinal extent of the cage, the lower end of the cage being formedwith a shoulder in a plane transverse of the longitudinal axis of thecage and extending outwardly therefrom, the wall of the cage beingformed with a plurality of longitudinally extending andcircumferentially arranged slotted openings intermediate the upper andlower ends and defining a pl-urality of longitudinally extendingcircumferentially arranged wall portions, each being segmental incross-section and establishing sliding bearing support about a portionof the body throughout its longitudinal extent, an elongate verticallydisposed tubular deformable packer sleeve engaged about and carried bythe cage and being of a thickness normally represented by the outsidediameter of the shoulder on the cage and the outside diameter of thecage, said packer sleeve having a plurality of longitudinally extendingcircurnlcrentially spaced, radially inwardly projecting ribs formedintegrally therein and projecting into the slots in the wall of the cageand establishing bearing engagement on the outer surfaces of' the bodybetween the said Awall portions of the cage, an actuating ring at theupper end of the cage having an outside diameter 'agreeing with theoutside diameter of the packer sleeve in its normal position, an insidedia-meter agreeing with the outside diameter of the cage and carryinglugs which extend through the slots through the wall of the cage andfixed to the body, whereby downward pressure upon the body and the ringwill act against the upper end of the sleeve to deform the same Ianddistend it radially into sealing engagement with the shoulder, the wallportions of the cage, the portions of the body between the wall portionsof the cage `and a circumseribing well structure, said ring slidablyengaging tand supporting the longitudinal wall portions of the cage andholding said wall portions in sliding engagement on the body, and asealing means carried by the lower end of the cage below the slots inthe cage to engage and seal with the body, said sealing means includinga downwardly opening socket in the lower end of the cage, an annularpacking ring in the socket engaging the body and a follower nut.threadedly engaged in the socket to engage and retain the packing ring.

4. A structure of the character refenred to including, an elongatecasing in a well bore, a liner hanger in said casing including, anelongate cylindrical body having upper and lower ends and a central owpassage, -a tubular liner fixed to and depending from the lower end ofthe body, an elongate slip barrel having upper and lower ends slidablyengaged about Ithe exterior of the body and having a plurality ofcircumferentially spaced casing engaging slips about its exterior, saidslips being upwardly and radially outwardly slidable rom an unactuatedposition where they are clear of the casing to an actuated positionwhere they engage the casing, a setting tool to releasably hold the bodyup in an unactuated position in the barrel and to releasably hold theslips in their unactuated position including, an elongate mandrel fixedto and depending from a run-in string extending into said casing, a nutin driving engagement on the mandrel `and threadedly engaged in theupper end of the body, a sleeve rotatabl) carried by the nut andengaging the upper end of the barrel and slip-engaging fingers carriedby the sleeve and releasably holding the slips down in their unactuatedposition, said `tool being `operable to rotate the nut out of engagmentwith the body and to shift the sleeve and the fingers out of engagementwith the barrel and the slips, whereby the slips are actuated to engagethe casing and the body is free yto shift downwardly relative to thebarrel, an elongate tubular packer cage having an upper portion fixed tothe lower end of the barrel, a central portion having a plurality ofcircumferentially spaced slot openings defining a plurality tofcircumferentially spaced longitudinal wall portions and an enlargedlower portion defining an upwardly disposed shoulder, said cage having acentral bore slidably receiving the portion of the body depending fromthe barrel, an elongate dependable packing sleeve having upper and lowerends slidably engaged about the exterior of `the central portion of thecage and having rib-like portions projecting into the openings in lthecage, said packing sleeve being of less longitudinal extent than thecentral portion of the cage and positioned with its lower end in bearingengagement on the shoulder, an annular actuating ring having a pluralityof radially inwardly projecting lugs slidably engaged about `the centralportion of the cage to occur adjacent the upper end of the packer sleeveand with the lugs projecting through the openings in the cage and fixedtothe body, said actuating ring being the same in cross-sectionalconfiguration as the packer sleeve whereby, upon downward shifting yofthe body and the ring, the weight of the liner and body is exerted onthe packer sleeve yto compress it between the actuating ring and theshoulder on the cage and distend it radially inwardly and outwardly intosealing engagement with the wall portions of the cage, the portions ofthe body between the wall portions of the cage and the casing, and anannular seal in the lower portion of the cage and sealing between thebody and the cage below the packer sleeve and the central portion of thecage.

5. A structure of the character referred to including, an elongatecasing in a well bore, -a 'liner hanger in said casing including, anelongate cylindrical body having upper `and lower ends and a centralflow passage, a tubular liner fixed to `and depending from the lower endof the body, an elongate slip barrel having upper and lower endsslidably engaged about the exterior of the body and having a pluralityof circumferential'ly spaced casing engaging slips about its exterior,said `slips being upwardly and radially outwardly slidable from anunactuated position where they are clear of the casing to an actuatedposition where they engage the casing, a setting ytool to releasablyhold ythe body up in an unactuated position in the `barrel and toreleasably hold the slips in their unactuated position including, anelongate mandrel fixed to and depending from a run-in string extendinginto said casing, a nut in driving engagement on the mandrel andthreadedly engaged in the upper end of the body, a sleeve rotatablycarried bythe nut and engaging the upper end of the barrel andslip-engaging fingers carried by the sleeve and releasably holding theslips down in their unactuated position, said tool being operable -torotate the nut out of engagement with the body and to shift the sleeveIand ythe fingers out of engagement with the barrel and the slips,whereby the slips are actuated to engage the casing and the body is freeto shift downwardly relative to the barrel, an elongate tubular packercage having an upper portion fixed to the lower end of the barrel, Iacentral portion having a plurality of circumferentially spaced slotopenings defining a plurality of circumferentially spaced longitudinalwall portions and an enlarged lower portion defining an upwardlydisposed shoulder, said cage having a central bore slidably receivingthe portion of the body depending from the barrel, an elongatedependable packing sleeve having upfper and lower ends slidably engagedabout the exterior of the central portion of the cage and havingrib-like portions projecting into the openings :in the cage, saidpacking sleeve being of less longitudinal extent than the centralportion of the Icage and positioned with 4its lower end in bearingengagement on the shoulder, an annular actuating ring having yaplurality of radially inwardly projecting lugs slidably engaged aboutthe central portion of the cage to occur adjacent the upper end of thepacker sleeve and with the lugs projecting through the openings in thecage and ixed to the body, said actuating ring being the same incross-sectional c'onguration as the packer sleeve whereby, upon downwardshifting of the body and thering, the weight of the liner and body isexerted on the packer sleeve to compress it between the actuating ringand fthe shoulder on the cage and distend it radially inwardly andoutwardly into sealing engagement with the wall portions `of the cage,the portions of the body between the wall portions of the `cage and thecasing, and sealing means carried by the lower portion of the cage belowthe slots in the cage and sealing with the body, said sealing meansincluding a downwardly 'opening socket in the lower end of the cage, anannular packing ring in the socket engaging the body and a follower unitthreadedly engaged -in ythe socket to engage and retain the packingring.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS2,230,447 Bassinger Feb. 4, 1941 2,249,155 Meddick July 15, 19412,337,733 Burns etal Dec. 28, 1943

1. A STRUCTURE OF THE CHARACTER REFERRED TO INCLUDING, AN ELONGATECASING IN A WELL BORE, A LINER HANGER IN SAID CASING INCLUDING, ANELONGATE CYLINDRICAL BODY HAVING UPPER AND LOWER ENDS AND A CENTRAL FLOWPASSAGE, A TUBULAR LINER FIXED TO AND DEPENDING FROM THE LOWER END OFTHE BODY, AND ELONGATE SLIP BARREL HAVING UPPER AND LOWER ENDS SLIDABLYENGAGED ABOUT THE EXTERIOR OF THE BODY AND HAVING A PLURALITY OFCIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED CASING ENGAGING SLIPS ABOUT ITS EXTERIOR, SAIDSLIPS BEING SHIFTABLE UPWARDLY AND RADIALLY OUTWARDLY FROM AN UNACTUATEDPOSITION WHERE THEY ARE CLEAR OF THE CASING TO AN ACTUATED POSITIONWHERE THEY ENGAGE THE CASING, A SETTING TOOL TO RELEASABLY HOLD THE BODYUP IN AN ACTUATED POSITION IN THE BARREL AND TO RELEASABLY HOLD THESLIPS IN THEIR UNACTUATED POSITION INCLUDING, AND ELONGATE MANDREL FIXEDTO AND DEPENDING FROM A RUN-IN STRING EXTENDING INTO SAID CASING, A NUTIN DRIVING ENGAGEMENT ON THE MANDREL AND THREADEDLY ENGAGED IN THE UPPEREND OF THE BODY, A SLEEVE ROTATABLY CARRIED BY THE NUT AND ENGAGING THEUPPER END OF THE BARREL AND SLIP ENGAGING FINGERS CARRIED BY THE SLEEVEAND RELEASABLY HOLDING THE SLIPS DOWN IN THEIR UNACTUATED POSITION, SAIDTOOL BEING OPERABLE TO ROTATE THE NUT OUT OF ENGAGEMENT WITH THE BODYAND TO SHIFT THE SLEEVE AND THE FINGERS OUT OF ENGAGEMENT WITH THEBARREL AND THE SLIPS, WHEREBY THE SLIPS ARE ACTUATED TO ENGAGE THECASING AND THE BODY IS FREE TO SHIFT DOWNWARDLY RELATIVE TO THE BARREL,AN ELONGATE TUBULAR PACKER CAGE HAVING AN UPPER PORTION FIXED TO THELOWER END OF THE BARREL, A CENTRAL PORTION HAVING A PLURALITY OFCIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED SLOT OPENINGS DEFINING A PLURALITY OFCIRCUMFERENTIALLY SPACED LONGITUDINAL WALL PORTIONS AND AN ENLARGED LOWEPORTION DEFINING AN UPWARDLY DISPOSED SHOULDER, SAID CAGE HAVING ASTRAIGHT CYLINDRICAL BORE SLIDABLY RECEIVING THE PORTION OF THE BODYDEPENDING FROM THE BARREL, SAID WALL PORTION OF THE CAGE BEING ARCUATEIN CROSSSECTION AND ESTABLISHING SLIDING BEARING SUPPORT ABOUT ADJACENTPORTIONS OF THE BODY, AND ELONGATE DEFORMABLE PACKING SLEEVE HAVINGUPPER AND LOWER ENDS SLIDABLY ENGAGED ABOUT THE EXTERIOR OF THE CENTRALPORTION OF THE CAGE AND HAVING RIB-LIKE PORTIONS PROJECTING INTO THEOPENINGS IN THE CAGE TO ENGAGE THE BODY, SAID PACKING SLEEVE BEING OFLESS LONGITUDINAL EXTEND THAN THE CENTRAL PORTION OF THE CAGE ANDPOSITIONED WITH ITS LOWER END IN BEARING ENGAGEMENT ON THE SHOULDER, ANANNULAR ACTUATING RING HAVING A PLURALITY OF RADIALLY INWARDLYPROJECTING LUGS SLIDABLY ENGAGED ABOUT THE CENTRAL PORTION OF THE CAGETO OCCUR ADJACENT THE UPPER END OF THE PACKER SLEEVE AND WITH THE LUGSPROJECTING THROUGH THE OPENINGS IN THE CAGE AND FIXED TO THE BODY, SAIDACTUATING RING BEING THE SAME IN CROSS-SECTIONAL CONFIGURATION AS THEPACKES SLEEVE WHEREBY, UPON DOWNWARD SHIFTING OF THE BODY AND THE RING,THE WEIGHT OF THE LINER AND BODY IS EXERTED ON THE PACKER SLEEVE TOCOMPRESS IT BETWEEN THE ACTUATING RING AND THE SHOULDER ON THE CAGE ANDDISTEND IT RADIALLY INWARDLY AND OUTWARDLY INTO SEALING ENGAGEMENT WITHTHE WALL PORTIONS OF THE CAGE, THE PORTIONS OF THE BODY BETWEEN THE WALLPORTIONS OF THE CAGE AND THE CASING, SAID ACTUATING RING SLIDABLYENGAGING AND HOLDING SAID WALL PORTIONS OF THE CAGE IN SLIDING BEARINGENGAGEMENT ON THE BODY, AND SEALING MEANS CARRIED BY THE LOWER PORTIONOF THE CAGE BELOW THE SLOTS IN THE CAGE AND SEALING WITH THE BODY, SAIDSEALING MEANS INCLUDING A DOWNWARDLY OPENING SOCKET IN THE LOWER END OFTHE CAGE, AN ANNULAR PACKING RING IN THE SOCKET ENGAGING THE BODY AND AFOLLOWER NUT THREADLY ENGAGED IN THE SOCKET TO ENGAGE AND RETAIN THEPACKING RING.